(Video) I'm overwhelmed by my yard and could use some help/ideas

7 years ago

last modified: 7 years ago

Massachusetts, USA

I've got the front and side pretty well taken care of with a good covering of grass, but the back and areas where I have mulch are such a mess.

Here is what I would like to accomplish:

Keep it low maintenance as I'm only 1 person and I don't want to spend a ton of time maintaining the yard.
Cut down that pile of wood (I have a chainsaw) to smaller pieces for my fire pit and move the location, but keep it nice and neat looking.
Rip out the bush, plants and weeds next to the driveway and plant a garden.
Finish the rock trim around the shed.
Get the areas with mulch free from weeds and grass permanently.
Stop the Japanese knotwood from growing (I've already ripped a ton of it out, but there's still a lot growing behind where the fence will be installed and in the woods).
I'd love to have the back yard covered with grass, but I don't know if I could realistically maintain it without sprinklers installed.

I think once the fence is installed (2-3 weeks out) it will look much better and make it easier to keep up the yard as it gives me a nice defined line for my back yard and separates the jungle behind it. What do you think it would cost me to have a landscaping company clean the entire thing up one time?

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Comments (4)

Kim in PL (SoCal zone 10/Sunset 24)
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
Hi Jon, I feel like I just took a ride on your lawnmower around your house. The unfortunate thing about your video is we only get a few seconds here and there when the camera points up from the ground to show the house and shed. Landscape design is intended to pull the house and garden together in a complementary fashion. We saw the problems that are most on your mind, but not the big picture.

Weeds -- there are several weed killing products on the market. Use one of them that has glyphosate. If you read the label and follow instructions, you can use it safely and be rid of the weeds. Repeated use will rid you of the Japanese knotweed, too. Persistent treatment until weeds are under control is essential. A common mistake is to spray, then let the next crop of weeds grow and go to seed before treating again. If a weed is allowed to grow and produce seed, the cycle is perpetuated. Kill kill kill! Then you're done.

About moving the garden -- veggie garden, right? It should be located in the sunniest spot in the garden -- south facing, no trees overhanging, no tree roots to compete with your plantings. (In the video we only see the base of the trees -- whatcha got there?)

I hope this won't come off as too harsh, but simply removing debris would really make a difference. The scattered bricks and wood planks, pots and whatever make it look like a yard sale after a hurricane. (yes, I exaggerate) But a tire? Come on Jon. :-) Rent a pickup or a dumpster and haul it all away, or put it away in the shed. Firewood, okay, I get that, but split the logs and make a neat stack along the fence with the firewood and nothing else. No random "parts" of this and that. Imagine yourself putting along on a ride-on lawnmower with nothing hidden in the grass, just relaxing and cutting the grass, enjoying your green space. Nice!
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Yardvaark
7 years ago
I agree with everything Kiminpl said. The good news is that if a crew of two people went in and worked on this for a day, tidying, hauling, etc., by day's end it would look great. Ten days later, all the weeds would be dead. (BTW, get yourself a BACKPACK sprayer for the weed killing as no other type is practical. You can pick up a good one that will last forever for less than $100. Or a cheap one that will work from Harbor Freight for less than $30. I suggest change the tip to FAN spray pattern instead of round. That way, you can spray more precisely, like a knife edge.)
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l pinkmountain
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I know it can seem overwhelming, but here's what I did with my backyard. I determined that I would work on something every single day. I set a time for 15 minutes and went out and worked every single day for that amount of time. It was all looking fabulous in a month. Nothing says you can't work more or longer, but doing a little bit each day is another way of accomplishing the clean up. And it would sure help to get someone else to work with you, so if you have a neighbor kid who needs some work for the summer, this is ideal for them.
kitasei
7 years ago
I don't think you need to jump in with weed killers, especially broadcast with a backpack sprayer. Get help on making a lawn on the organic lawn forum. Cardboard or newspaper and woodchips will take care of weeds everywhere else. And I can't imagine you need a sprinkler system to have a lawn in Massachusetts. Clean up, rake and mow what you have before you do anything else. You're not making a golf course.

(Video) I'm overwhelmed by my yard and could use some help/ideas

Comments (4)

Kim in PL (SoCal zone 10/Sunset 24)

Yardvaark

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